Mahmoud Shalash¹, Ahmad Abdalsamad²
Abstract
Background: Many factors play a role in the long-term survival of osseointegrated dental implants. Among these, the preservation of crestal bone remains to be the key principal. The aim of this comparative study was to assess crestal bone loss (CBL) between tissue-level implants restored with platform matching abutments and bone-level implants restored with conical/platform switched hybrid abutments in the posterior molar region.
Results: All implants in both groups showed a 100% survival and success rate at 1 year. Mean CBL for group I was 0.8 mm (SD 0.85), and mean CBL for group II was 0.18 mm (SD 0.48). There was a statistically signiicant diference between the CBL in both groups (p < 0.001). The highest mean value was found in the tissue level group, while the lowest mean value was found in the bone level group.
Conclusion: Within the limitations of the sample size of this study, both implant designs showed minimal CBL at 1-year post-loading. Bone level implants with a platform switched conical hybrid connection showed less CBL compared to tissue level implants.
Keywords: Crestal bone loss, Tissue level implants, Conical connection, Platform switching, Morse taper, Bone level implants